Boeing Dreamlifter departs Wichita's Jabara airport

The Boeing 747-400 Dreamlifter freighter that inadvertently landed at a small general aviation airport in Wichita, Kansas has departed and landed again at its intended destination.

Atlas Air flight 4241 took off from Wichita’s Colonel James Jabara airport at 13:16 local time on 21 November. The airport’s single runway measures 33.5m wide and 1,860m long, which is much shorter than the runway that the large aircraft typically uses during its operations.

The aircraft landed at McConnell Air Force Base at 13:35 local time after a 19 minute flight, flight tracking website FlightAware shows. The base has two runways each measuring 3,658m long and is close to key Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems.

The aircraft was originally scheduled to land at McConnell on Wednesday evening after departing from New York John F. Kennedy International airport. However, the freighter instead landed at Jabara at 21:20 local time, FlightAware shows.

Boeing told Flightglobal that it is working with Atlas to “determine the circumstances” of the landing. The aircraft landed safely and was not damaged in the process, says the manufacturer.

The aircraft was turned 180 degrees with a tug to be re-positioned for take-off, a spokesperson for the Wichita Airport Authority tells Flightglobal.